Matching Moony
by everlovingdeer
Summary: "Maybe I should ask you the same question?" He raised an eyebrow. "I thought I was going to Hogsmeade with you but instead your friend appeared." "But I'd never said that I was talking about me," my voice trailed off, realisation dawning on me, "You wanted to go to Hogsmeade with me."
1. Matching Moony

I liked being a prefect. I liked being able to walk around the school whilst others were supposed to be asleep, I liked having access to the Prefect's bathroom and more than anything, I liked being around the other prefects – especially those from other houses. Not that I didn't like being in Hufflepuff – I did. It was just that sometimes we, the students, got so into identifying ourselves as members of a certain house that we didn't really have time to socialise outside of our house. By being a prefect and attending the meetings, I'd made friends with so many people that I would probably have never spoken to otherwise.

But there was one thing I absolutely hated about being a prefect and that was the meeting that happened at the start of the year. Of all places, it was held in the prefect's carriage and once it was over we couldn't return to our carriages – no, instead we had to patrol the bloody train too. Before my fifth year, before I had become a prefect, I'd always looked forward to the train ride because I got to catch up with friends that I hadn't had the opportunity to meet up with during the holidays. And because I was a prefect, I couldn't do that anymore.

I looked around the carriage, seeing the looks my friends were giving me as I rose to my feet. "Don't look at me like that," I protested, straightening out my uniform. "You know that I can't do anything about it."

"Just miss it," my best friend, Amaris, pleaded, reaching out to pull on the sleeve of my robe. "Merlin's beard, the head boy is James bleeding Potter, for goodness' sake. He's hardly going to be able to say anything to you – miss goody too shoes. Besides, this is our last year."

"I know." I sighed and pulled my arm out of her hold, "Believe me I know and I don't want to go to the meeting either but I have to – they're giving out the patrol schedules and I'm finding out who my patrol partner is. I promise I'll see you girls at the feast?" I looked at the faces of the sullen girls in the carriage. Looking to the girl in the corner, I gave her a grateful smile – at least Pari was willing to send me off with a smile. "Merlin, you all look like girlfriends that have been dumped just before valentine's day. Chin up and I'll see you soon."

There was a knock on the closed carriage door. As I was already on my feet, I opened it to find Remus on the other side.

I smiled up at the taller boy, "Remus, how was your summer?"

"The usual."

"Meaning you got up to a lot of mischief with the other 3?" He rubbed his neck bashfully.

"I came to pick you up," he explained, looking around the carriage and nodding in greeting towards my friends. They returned it and Amaris perked up in her seat. "Since we're going the same way, I thought that I'd seek out some companionship. We're going to be late otherwise."

Taking a glance at my watch, I hurried out of the carriage, "Shoot, you're right."

Waving once more at my friends, I shut the carriage door behind me before making my way towards the prefect's carriage. Remus fell into step beside me, hands tucked into his robe pockets.

"Your friends look almost as distraught as mine do," he said with a slight chuckle. At my look, he went on the explain, "James is head boy now so Pads is left all alone with Peter. But I'm sure he'll get over it soon enough, once he's thought up another scheme."

I made a sound in understand, before looking up at him curiously. "So, one a scale of one to ten, how shocked was Potter to get head boy?"

"He was going to reject it at first – he's got enough on his plate as the quidditch captain," he started to say as we drew closer to the prefect's carriage.

"But?"

"But he found out who the head girl was."

I couldn't help but giggle and Remus rolled his eyes. He'd long known that I 'shipped' the pair of them together and was silently cheering Potter on in his endeavour of winning Lily's heart. We reached the carriage and Remus held the door open for me, letting me go in first. Sitting down beside one another, I looked around the carriage and noticed that we were one of the last prefects to arrive.

Once the prefects had all arrived, we settled down for the start of yet another mind numbingly boring prefects meeting. Or rather it was supposed to have been. But whilst Lily went over the list of duties of a prefect (which I'd memorised by now), I found myself watching the interactions between Potter and Lily. Potter was confident in his role as the head boy but frankly, the man was floundering. He had all the charm and charisma in the world but he had no idea what he was doing. Dumbledore had given the title of head boy away to one of the biggest troublemakers in the school and it flustered Lily.

This was going to be an interesting year.

By the time I had come out of my musings, I was handed a timetable of the patrols. Looking for my name on the schedule, I looked down at my partner's name and smiled, well at least I wasn't going to get stuck with Parkinson and his wandering hands. Nudging the boy beside me with my elbow, I smiled when he looked down at me.

"It looks like we're partners."

"It does," he said quietly, throwing a look a Potter who was too busy arguing with Lily to notice.

I frowned, shifting away from him slightly. My movement caught his attention and he looked back at me. "There's no need to sound so happy about it," I muttered sarcastically.

"No, I am happy," he assured me, giving me a genuine smile. "Really, I'm just annoyed that James has put us down for so many late-night patrols. "I frowned, scrunching my nose up slightly. I'd noticed that fact as well. Another thing I hated about being a prefect was getting stuck with late night patrols. These were the patrols that ended at almost 1 am and the castle was so bloody scary at that time in the night. But at least I'd have Remus by my side to scare anything off.

"Wait a minute," I said slowly, his words dawning on me. "You're saying that as if Potter controls the schedule."

"He does," Remus replied with evident confusion. "I thought you knew that – both he and Lily spent ages sorting it out."

I groaned in annoyance, "I'm going to kill that boy."

Remus snorted beside me. "By doing what exactly? Hugging him into oblivion."

I shot him a filthy look which only made him snigger even more.

Once the meeting came to a close, we started to patrol the train and Merlin, was it boring. Walking up and down the hallway, I was thankful that Remus was walking beside me. If I had been made to patrol on my own, then I might have burst into tears from the sheer boredom – _that's_ how bad it was. But with him by my side, the time flew by as we talked and caught up with each other. Even once the train had pulled into the station and we had escorted the first years towards the boats, we stayed together and talked about anything and everything.

The first time we parted was during the feast. I returned to the Hufflepuff table and he made his way towards the Gryffindor one. Sliding in between Pari and Amaris, I smiled in greeted to the girls and the sorting started. Amaris shifted by my side, clearly desperate to say something, throughout the entire sorting. Once the sorting hand ended, we finally helped ourselves to some food.

"Set me up with Remus?" she asked quietly, making me stop halfway through ladling some soup into my bowl. My heart dropped into my stomach and I found that my appetite had shrunk. Pari stopped her movements beside me.

Clearing my throat, I asked, "What?"

"Set me up with Remus," she repeated, slightly louder this time.

Putting my bowl down in front of me, I turned to face the girl by my side. Behind me, Pari took my hand comfortingly beneath the table. "I didn't know you liked him."

"I started thinking about him like that over summer," she said sheepishly, looking away from me momentarily. "And you've gotten so close to him."

"We were potion partners –"

"But you're friends now!" She took my other hand, the one Pari wasn't holding and squeezed it gently. "Please, I know that if I approach him on my own then he'll just reject me kindly and if you help me get closer to him then I actually have a chance! Please!"

I took my hand away from both Pari and Amaris, and played with my fingers as I thought it through. Amaris was beautiful, stunning in a way that I would never be. She was the sort of girl that boys flocked to and I would never hold a candle to her – that much I knew.

Letting out a slight breath, I forced myself to smile at her. From the corner of my eye I caught the bewildered look that Pari was giving me. "Ok."

Amaris squealed, pulling me into a brief hug, "Thank you, you're the best friend ever!"

"Don't mention it," I mumbled, picking up my spoon and making random patterns with it in my soup.

"What's the matter?" Amaris frowned.

"I'm just not hungry." I smiled reassuringly at her, "Don't give me that look – I'm fine, trust me."

When she turned back to her own food, after I had assured her two more times that I was fine, I looked to the girl on my other side. "Don't give me that look either, Pari."

"And, why shouldn't I?" She gave me a firm look. "This look is reserved for stupid people who do stupid things – i.e. you."

"Pari –"

"No," she lowered her voice, "You've liked Lupin for the past two years and now you're actually helping set your best friend up with the guy _you_ like?"

"I'm just being a good friend."

She shook her head and said with blatant concern, "You need to start putting yourself before others more often."

"I'm fine," I insisted, only to get rolled eyes in response.

Looking back into my soup bowl, I chewed my cheek; I wasn't fine.

* * *

I was late.

Rushing down the stairs from our dorm, I took them two at a time, and hurried to make my way out of the common room. I needed to meet Remus in front of the great hall for our rounds in five minutes and I'd never get there in time. Remus would never say anything to me because I was late, I knew that, but I couldn't let him wait around for me.

I made my quickly towards the entrance when I heard a call of my name. Forcing myself to stop in my step, I looked back at the girl that was approaching me. Unsurprisingly, even though it was already late in the night, the common room was packed.

Amaris smiled once she'd reached me, "Are you heading out for your patrol?"

"Yeah." I looked pointedly at my watch, "I'm supposed to start in five minute and I don't want to keep Remus waiting."

"Where are you patrolling again?" she asked curiously, making me furrow my eyebrows in confusion. Why did she want to know that? "We're supposed to patrol the area near the great hall."

"So, the first floor then?" I nodded and she smiled again, "Ok, that's good."

"Why do you want to know?" I asked as my curiosity got the better of me.

"I think I need to take a more proactive approach," she admitted, tucking some hair behind her ear. "Talking to him and studying with the pair of you is good – don't get me wrong, I like spending time with him. But I want to make some actual progress and see what he's like hen he's away from the books."

"He's just shy, Amaris," I said with a sigh. "It takes him time to warm up to people properly."

"It's been enough time don't you think?" She cocked her head to the side and winked at me, "When you see me later on, just make sure to give me some alone time with him?"

"What do you mean later on?" My question fell on deaf ears as she walked back towards our friends. Pari gave me a look; she still hugely disapproved of this entire thing. "Amaris, it's past curfew!"

Rolling my eyes, I headed out of the common room and made my way towards the great hall. As I approached the great hall, I spotted him leaning against the large doors, waiting for me. At the sound of my footsteps, he straightened up and tucked his hands into his trouser pockets, forgoing his robe.

"I'm sorry I made you wait," I apologised once I'd come to a stop by his side.

He waved his hand dismissively, "Don't worry about it, I didn't wait long."

Looking down at my watch, I frowned and felt even worse about making him wait. "Remus, you waited for 15 minutes."

"Exactly, I didn't wait long." He shrugged his shoulders, "Besides I knew that you probably lost track of time whilst doing something."

"It was my potions essay," I admitted. "I don't quite understand the question."

"I'll help you," he offered as we started to walk through the corridor. I heard something move and flinched, moving closer to him. Remus laughed under his breath and I moved away from hm. "On one condition, of course."

"What condition?" I looked up at him, moving to his side once again when one of the suits of armour decided it would be fun to move and scare me.

He looked down at my hand and I flushed, realising that I had taken a hold of his jumper. Clearing my throat, I let go of it.

"We're allowed to choose our potions partner this year," he explained. This time _he_ moved closer to my side and I pretended not to know that it was because he didn't want to embarrass me further. Merlin, I hated late night patrols. "And well I've grown accustomed to working with you."

"You want me to be your potions partner?" He nodded and I smiled, "Of course I'll be your partner – frankly you're the best partner I've had."

"Same here," he admitted before stopping, his arm held out in front of me to stop me from moving forward. "Do you hear that?"

He stepped in front of me slightly and led the way into the room where the noise was coming from. Well, it appeared that Gryffindor bravery was useful for something after all.

I heard it then too. Merlin, it was nearly midnight and if it was a student out of bed then I was going to kill them. But there was always the chance that it wasn't. it could have been one of the castle ghosts, but there were rumours of dark wizards that roamed the castle grounds at night.

Not that I believed them but –

"Amaris," I exclaimed, looking at the girl that was causing the noise.

She packed up what looked like an essay and the tension flooded out of Remus' shoulders. The protective stance that I hadn't realised he'd taken, was dropped and he returned to stand by my side. Remus scanned the classroom, looking for any other students and Amaris took the chance to wink conspiratorially at me – so this was what she'd meant.

"I guess I lost track of time," she said in explanation as she approached the two of us, her eyes solely focused on Remus. "Were you worried about me?"

Looking down at her momentarily, Remus sent me a look. "You're out past curfew."

"But you can forgive that right?" She adjusted the bag on her shoulder, "For me?"

"The rules are the rules." Remus shook his head and nudged me slightly with his arm. "But I'm also not allowed to take points from someone who's not in my house."

He gave me a pointed look and I sighed, "He's right, 5 points from Hufflepuff."

Amaris deflated slightly, before perking up and latching onto Remus' arm. "Well, now that you've seen me, why don't we head back to our common rooms?"

"We've still got rounds to complete," he pointed out, shrugging out of her hold. "Why don't you hurry up to your common room."

"But it's scary in the night." She threw me a pointed look.

"She's got a point Remus." I couldn't meet his eyes, "Why don't you walk her back to the Hufflepuff common room and I'll finish the rounds?"

"On your own?" He rolled his eyes, "You're more frightened then she is. Why don't we both walk her back and then we can finish the rounds?"

There was no room for argument and we all headed back to the Hufflepuff common room. Remus walked ahead of us, giving us time to talk. Amaris linked her arm through mine with a sigh.

"So, that plan failed." She pouted, "He's too concerned about you to leave you alone – isn't he wonderful?"

"I guess." I cleared my throat, knowing that Remus could hear us. It was close enough to the full moon for his senses to begin heightening – not that he knew that I knew of his furry little problem.

"I'm going to ask him to Hogsmeade," she leaned in to whisper in my ear at a volume that he couldn't hear.

"What?" I exclaimed quietly, "You've barely spoken to each other."

"I _have_ spoken to him when you're not around, you know." She hummed contemplatively, "But he's more quiet when you're not around. You know what, on second thought, why don't you ask him for me?"

"Amaris," I tried to protest but she left me to walk beside Remus as the entrance to the common room drew nearer.

Before Amaris had even entered the common room, Remus turned back to me with a warm smile. "We're alone again, shall we get going?"

* * *

Another thing I liked about being a prefect was that we got to decorate the castle whenever there was a festival coming up. Before we all went on Christmas holiday, I wanted to spread some holiday cheer around the school. We had been granted a free pass to miss lessons in order to decorate the school and had met up in the great hall for the jobs to be split up. Lily and Potter stood before the teacher's table and divided up jobs between each pair of prefects.

The prefects that were responsible for decorating the corridors filed out of the great hall and we got to work. Remus and I had been assigned with decorating the Christmas tress – all of them. The largest Christmas tree stood behind the teacher's table and several smaller ones lined the edges of the room. It was a big task, but not compared to the mammoth task of charming the ceiling to snow only during meal times.

"We've got a lot of work to do," I said to Remus as we levitated the box of decorations to trail after us. My eyes swept over all ten boxes of decorations. "Merlin, we'd better get started or else we'll never finish in time."

"Be glad that we're not doing it the muggle way," he said quietly, magicking the boxes so that they were set on the ground. I levitated some tinsel onto each of the trees. "It would take so much longer otherwise."

"I guess you're right."

We worked in a companionable silence, decorating the trees as a small group of prefects set to work on the roof. Stringing fairy lights on the trees, I charmed them to light up when Remus pressed a hand to the small of my back. The contact startled me so much that I didn't get through casting the charm. The fairy lights flickered off as he pushed me closer to him.

"Sorry," he apologised as I found myself suddenly braced against his chest, my heart thumping in my own chest. I looked up into his face but he wouldn't make eye contact, a red blush covering his cheeks.

Before I could ask him what he was doing, Lily ran past us as she did her best to avoid Potter who chased after her with a sprig of mistletoe. She laughed as she ran, Potter chuckling behind her. When they were some distance away from us, I pushed away from him and felt him drop his hand reluctantly.

"It's alright Remus." I forced myself to smile casually.

"They'd have bumped into you otherwise," he said quietly, needlessly.

"It's alright," I reassured him, turning back to the task that I had been assigned. "Let's get the trees finished, we've still got quite a lot to do."

"You're right."

The silence we worked in after that was awkward – neither of us spoke a word. I charmed the fairy lights again and this time they remained on. Stepping back to look at all the trees, I chewed on the inside of my cheeks. Something was missing but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

Remus said my name quietly, tapping me on the shoulder as he did so. I jumped slightly, and turned to look at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"Don't worry about it Remus – you of all people know that I'm a jumpy person." He smiled genuinely at that. "Did you need something?"

"We've emptied all ten boxes of decorations but we haven't found any of the stars," he explained. _That_ was what had been missing – the stars. "Do you know where they are?"

"I'm not sure," I admitted, biting on my bottom lip, "I'd ask Lily or Potter but they're both too busy flirting instead of setting up the mistletoe."

"Well it's bound to be here somewhere." He crossed his arms over his chest and scanned the hall, "Professor McGonagall said that all of the decorations had been delivered to the great hall."

"Let's split up and take a look for it," I said, already walking away from him, "They'll be lying around somewhere."

In normal circumstances, I'd have gone to the head boy or head girl to ask them if they knew where the missing stars were. But – the head boy and head girl were Lily Evans and James Potter, and they were too busy flirting with each other. I started my search for the stars by returning to the place where we had found the other boxes of decorations. But apparently, there was no need for me to do that.

Remus jogged towards me, holding another box in his hands. Opening the box, we pulled each of the stars out and put them on the table. Making a face at the state of them, I ran my finger across one of them, only for it to come back dirty.

"We need to clean these," I said quietly to Remus who left momentarily to get some cleaning supplies.

"We have to clean these by hand or they'll get damaged," he explained as I sat down at the Hufflepuff table. He settled down across from me and we began to clean each of the stars.

I let out a deep breath as I remembered what I'd promise myself I'd do today. If I didn't get it done today, then it would be too late. Tomorrow was a Hogsmeade weekend and if I didn't ask him for Amaris, then she'd have to wait until the next Hogsmeade weekend which was after the Christmas holiday. But how was I supposed to ask him? Especially when I didn't particularly _want_ to ask him?

"Are you alright?" Remus aske quietly, picking up on my unusual mood as I finished cleaning the final star.

"I'm fine," I muttered, as we started to levitate the stars into place. Once we were finished, I looked back at Remus, only to find him looking at me. "Actually, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

"You can ask me anything," he reassured me, reaching out to put a hand on top of mine.

The gesture was reassuring but it only made me feel ill when I remembered what I was about to do. Pulling my hand away from him, I returned it to my side.

"Remus, there's a Hogsmeade trip this weekend." I avoided his eyes, "And well I was wondering if -"

He didn't give me the chance to finish my sentence, cutting me off midway, "Yes."

– _if you'd like to go with Amaris._

Once we had finished all of the decorating, we were allowed to return to the common room and I told Amaris the news. She thanked me a dozen times and I retreated to my bed to avoid Pari's eyes. I wished that I had listened to her from the very start.

The next day Amaris headed off to Hogsmeade with a spring in her step and I headed into the library. Today was probably the very first Hogsmeade weekend where I would prefer to be doing schoolwork over exploring Hogsmeade. I stayed in the library for a long time, even as the first load of students returned from Hogsmeade. It had been 3 hour since Amaris had left the common room – I was keeping track – but I had no idea if she'd returned yet.

With a sigh, I ran a hand through my hair and buried my head in my hands; only I would get myself into this sort of situation. Even at the sound of footsteps, I didn't raise my head. Groaning into my hands, I tied my hair back from my face and looked up, only to do a double take at the person standing in front of me.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Hogsmeade?" I asked quietly, picking up my quill and pretending that I was carrying on with my essay. They didn't take the hint. Instead of leaving, they sat down in the seat beside me.

A hand took the quill from my hands, forcing me to look up again. Setting the quill down in front of him, Remus crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair.

"Maybe I should ask you the same question?" He raised an eyebrow. "I thought I was going to Hogsmeade with you but instead your friend appeared."

"But I'd never said that I was talking about me," my voice trailed off, realisation dawning on me, "You wanted to go to Hogsmeade with me."

Remus coloured slightly, but nodded anyway, "And I thought that you wanted to go with me."

"I did," I blurted out before I could stop myself, "I do."

"Then what happened?" He sighed and shook his head, "Explain to me because I'm so confused."

"She likes you," I said quietly, looking down into my hands. "Amaris likes you and she asked me to set the two of you up –"

"And you couldn't tell her that you like me too?"

"I thought you'd prefer her." He was silent following my words, "Isn't she the type that guys prefer? She's much more beautiful than I am-"

He took my face in his hands, silencing me. "Maybe that's true for most guys, but I'm not most guys."

He dipped his head down, watching me as he drew closer. My eyes shut without my consent and he closed the distance between us pressing his lips against mine. Before the kiss could progress, before I could return it, I drew back at the sound of a sharp gasp. My eyes drifted over his shoulder and to the girl standing behind him.

"Amaris –"

She turned and left the library. Packing my things quickly, I chased after her and left Remus sitting where he was. I followed her towards the common room, trying to get her to listen to me but she wouldn't. Storming through the common room, she headed up to our dorm and made a beeline for her bed.

"Amaris, please," I said quietly, trying to get her to meet my eyes. "You have to let me explain."

She drew the curtains closed around her bed and I sighed, dropping down onto my own. How had I screwed up so monumentally?

"What's the matter?" a voice asked from the doorway and I raised my eyes to Pari's. She looked between me and the closed curtains of Amaris' bed.

"I messed up."

* * *

I avoided Remus for the rest of the term by switching rounds with other prefects and switching seats in potions with Potter. Whilst I was avoiding Remus, I was also being avoided by Amaris. Merlin, I had no idea what to do.

Just like that, the term came to an end and with it Christmas holiday came and went. I found myself back in the Hufflepuff common room before I knew it. I was supposed to be getting ready for my patrol but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Remus was bound to be waiting with a million questions that I wasn't sure I could answer for him.

Earlier today, I had attempted to swap shifts with Potter, only to be told by Potter that he wasn't going to let me swap shifts anymore because I needed to sort things out with Remus. I was tempted to go to Lily, but something told me that she would have said the same thing.

Forcing myself to my feet, I went to leave my dorm when the door swung open to reveal Pari and Amaris on the other side. I stepped out of the way to let them both into the room.

"Where are you going?" Amaris asked, shutting the door behind her.

I felt my eyebrows rise in shock – that was the first thing she'd said to me since she'd seen us in the library. "I'm scheduled to go on patrol soon."

"With Remus?" I nodded, looking away from her. She sighed and threw herself at me. I stumbled from the impact of her hug.

"Amaris?"

"You bloody idiot," she muttered against my shoulder, "Why didn't you tell me that you liked him? What would you have done if Pari hadn't explained everything to me?" My eyes widened as I met Pari's eyes from over Amari's shoulder. I thanked her silently and she rolled her eyes – she was the typical mum friend, always sorting our messes out.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, returning her hug.

"What are you sorry for?" She pulled away to give me a look, "There's no need for you to be sorry. Merlin, I should have noticed it sooner." She righted herself and straightened out my uniform. "Now, hurry up or you'll be late – go and get your man!"

The change in my mood was obvious from the way I walked but as I drew closer to the great hall, the happiness I felt at everything with Amaris being sorted out, drained away. Nervousness took its place as I wondered what I was going to tell Remus. He was waiting for me beside the doors of the great hall, once again.

"Remus," I called out once I was close enough.

The sound of my voice made him straighten up. "I didn't think you'd come."

"I'm sorry," I floundered for words, "I know I should have said something to you and I shouldn't have gone out of my way to avoid you but –"

"Just don't do it again," he interrupted me. He gave me a firm look, closing the distance between us. "Don't shut me out again and I'll forgive you."

Raising my eyes to meet his, I asked, "Promise?"

He smiled gently, "I promise." Clearing his throat, he held his hand out, "Now, let's start out rounds."

Slipping my hand into his, I went readily to his side. "Lead the way."


	2. Epilogue

_9 YEARS LATER_

I anxiously paced the length of the front room, looking at the clock every time I passed it. Weren't they supposed to be done by now? Of course, it was early in the morning but the sun had risen and the full moon had set long ago. Surely they were supposed to have returned by now? A hand settled on my shoulder and I jumped at the contact.

"Here," Lily said as she handed me a mug of hot tea, "You need to relax, the boys have done this for a long time."

"I know that," I replied, taking a sip and feeling the warmth from the tea settle in my stomach. It didn't help to ease my worry. "Believe me I know that, but I can't help but worry about them and about Remus. What if something happened?"

"He hasn't hurt anyone in a long time," she reminded me gently as she led me to the table. Taking a seat, I watched as she settled down into the seat across from me, willing to lend me her ear.

"There's something I need to tell you," I said quietly, looking over at Teddy and Harry as they played quietly in the corner of the room. They remained blissfully unaware of the situation. "I brewed some wolfsbane for him. It was at his request and you know how complex of a potion it is – I don't think I have the skill to do it successfully. But I did brew it and he drank it but Merlin, Lily, you know how disastrous a wrongly brewed wolfsbane potion can be. What if something happened to him because of the potion?"

She listened silently to my words before reaching out to put her hand on top of mine. "Of course, I know that, but I also know that you have a habit of underestimating your abilities. We went to school together, in case you forgot, and I got to witness your potion brewing ability first hand and you are extremely skilled at it, more so than you believe. Let's wait for the three of them to return and believe me, everything will be fine."

"I'm not too sure about that," I murmured, watching as my son rose onto his unsteady feet and slowly approached us.

6 year old Harry followed my 1 year old son, watching him like a hawk in case he showed any signs of falling. Teddy walked closer to the table, holding his arms out for me to hold him. When he was close enough, I took him in my arms and Harry climbed into the chair beside his mother. Lily continued to engage me in conversation and I pretended that I didn't know that she was doing it to distract me.

Teddy started to squirm in my arms and I tried to calm him. "What's the matter sweetheart?"

He made grabby motions towards something behind me. "Dada."

The word had me out of my chair. I faced the doorway and watched the three men who walked into the room. Remus reached out to take Teddy from me and I found my eyes scanning his form for any new visible scars. From what I could see, there weren't any. But there was always the possibility that his clothing was shielding the scar from my eyes.

"I'm alright," Remus said quietly to me when he realised what I was doing, "I'm fine, love."

I looked up into his eyes, unable to hide my concern, "The potion –"

"Worked like a charm – like I knew it would." He smiled down at Teddy who was speaking his usual gibberish to his father. Remus nodded as if he understood what our son was saying, before turning back to me, "I told you that you could do it. You need to stop underestimating yourself."

"What would have happened if I brewed it wrong?" I reached out to smooth some of Teddy's hair back.

Remus shifted to hold Teddy in one arm and with the other, he ran his thumb along my jaw. "I trust you."

"Maybe a little bit too much," I couldn't help but mutter, making him roll his eyes.

"My favourite sister-in-law," Sirius chimed, appearing beside me to throw an arm over my shoulder, "Aren't you being a bit too bias with your concern? Evans' is too busy showing her concern only towards James," Lily rolled her eyes at Sirius' insistence of using her maiden name, "And you're only looking at your husband. It's a bit unfair."

"Then hurry up and settle down, Pads," Remus responded, handing Teddy over to his favourite godfather.

Sirius instantly started making faces at Teddy who giggled and raised a spit covered hand to touch Sirius' face. "If I settled down Moony, then what would happen to all the women who still crave a marauder."

"I should set you up with Pari," I muttered under my breath, "She'd set you straight."

Sirius said nothing in return as I headed into the kitchen. Not that the three of them would ever complain about being hungry, but the night of the full moon always made them ravenous the next morning. Thankfully, by this point, Lily and I were used to the sudden change in their appetite and had already made breakfast and placed a warming charm over it.

Taking the food to the table, I watched as the three grown men instantly settled down at the table. Helping themselves to food, they continued to laugh and joke. Harry was sat with the three men, acting as if he was an adult too, and Teddy was sitting beside him, in his highchair, following the behaviour of his role model.

Lily walked to my side and asked quietly, "Are you going to brew the potion next time, too?"

"I will," I responded, sharing a smile with her, "Especially if it makes him act like this after the full moon. I could never make him revert back to the self-deprecating person he used to be after each transformation."


End file.
